Main menu

Who’s going to get hurt at Man City?

Sergio Aguero now in a location near you
Carlos Tevez must have got the message loud and clear. Whether he leaves or doesn’t Sergio Aguero is set to join City at an estimated price of £38m. However it does set up a quandary for Roberto Mancini who seems to have a line up promising to break all sorts of goalscoring records but are emotionally and mentally brittle.
Mario Balotelli’s chip on the shoulder attitude and tendency to implode means this highly talented striker will be limited to an impact role. Under Jose Mourinho this was indeed the case especially towards the end as Balotelli became embroiled in a series of coaching and on field controversies. The racism that led him to act out against some Italian fans has not been a factor in England. But despite that there appears to be no let up in that destructive trend under Mancini.
There is however no relief with Tevez who’s mental attitude stem from an opposite set of problems. Tevez’s crying call is the juagdor del pueblo which so far has eluded him in his English sojourn. He puts his heart out on the pitch but it is off the pitch where he needs to be nourished because his idle mind fills with imagined slights and omissions leaving him marginalized and homesick. What really does damage to Tevez’s transfer prospects have less to do with the price tag and his wages which obviously few clubs can afford as his image of a wayward son whose grievances are profitable to third party operators making many deals as possible before retirement.
Whether he feels he can make a go of it at City after the Corinthians bid failed is likely to be a key issue but Mancini is not waiting. It will be interesting to see whether he decides to use both Tevez and Aguero as both can play the position of first and second striker but on the occasions they have played alongside for Argentina have proved less effective lacking height and suffering from positional redundany. Which might mean the Italian manager will have to pair up one of the two with Dzeko who’s had his emotional crosses to bear and is desperate to justify his £27m price tag after a disappointing first season.
Off to the side are the unhappy trio of Craig Bellamy, Emmanuel Adebayor, and Roque Santa Cruz who are looking for a way out for regular first team action. There are loan deals in the offing – Adebayor is on Harry Redknapp’s radar and Santa Cruz will most likely continue at Blackburn.
On paper this line up can easily score over 70+ goals. Off it there are many X’s and O’s to be filled before it makes sense. The arrival of Aguero will pose a challenge to the group Mancini already has in place. As a manager he has to make sure it remains a competitive one.